


Find Your Inner Peace

by RiverRaySong



Category: The LEGO Ninjago Movie (2017)
Genre: Bounty Hunters, F/M, M/M, Oops, They're off on a quest, and to think I was a gay writer, but I just got my first AO3 acc, but the third is gay, but they're adorable together, but they're much older now, i wrote this like 3 years ago, it's two OCs, oh wait there's three straight ships, oh well, old married couples am I right?, so I'm posting it here now, so they know how to handle marriage, the third one is also OC x OC, there are two straight ships, they got divorced
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:47:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 19,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24724033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RiverRaySong/pseuds/RiverRaySong
Summary: Lily Pawn is a homeless sixteen-year-old girl in a world of LEGO minifigures, to be specific, she lives in Ninjago City. Secretly the samurai who keeps getting in the way of the ninja, she has a thirst for revenge against all fire, ever since both her parents died in one. When she becomes friends with Lloyd Garmadon, unaware that he is the Green Ninja, she is thrown into a reality which she wants no part of. But as time goes on, Lily realizes that maybe some things should be left in the past- to make peace with the fire.
Relationships: Lloyd Garmadon/Original Female Character(s), Nya/Jay Walker
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	1. Lily Pawn

I wonder sometimes about whether I’m doing the right thing. Whether I should be running away from my problems or not. Specifically, running away from the orphanage. But I have to. Jane was starting to figure out my secret identity.

My name is Lily Pawn, and I’m a samurai. My parents died when I was two and I’d lived at the orphanage until I was fifteen. That’s when I ran away and became a samurai, training by night and saving the day by day. An old man taught me to be a samurai. My preferred weapons were my two katanas, but I could settle for anything.

But sometimes finding food is hard. No one likes a homeless kid, although they won’t call social services because they’re too lazy. That’s a plus for me, but it’d be nice if people liked me. Only six people have been nice to me; that was a gang of high school students who gave me some money. I think one of them was that kid Lloyd, the son of Lord Garmadon, the guy who attacks Ninjago City. I feel bad for that kid.

Anyways, the Secret Ninja Force and I aren’t on very good terms. I usually get in the way of their stuff, but hey, I’m trying to protect the city here, and if you’re _literally destroying city property_ , I gotta beat you up, you know? I feel bad for the construction team that has to fix everything they break. I try my best, but a girl can’t be everywhere at once.

Today I’m moving from my begging spot because this dude who smokes moved in next to me. I can’t handle smoke, it brings back bad memories. My parents died in a fire. That’s one of the reasons why I hate the Fire Ninja so much. He’s always shooting flames everywhere, not caring if a building catches on fire. I think that the Secret Ninja Force is actually more dangerous than Lord Garmadon, TBH. Anyways, I’m headed for the market district. Maybe someone will take pity on me. I just hope nobody calls social services.

My backpack was slung over my shoulder as I pushed my way into the market district crowd. I needed to find a place that people could see me and not be too crowded; I don’t want my money hat to be knocked over and spill money everywhere. That’d be a _big_ problem.

But as I shouldered my way through the crowd, I felt someone tap my shoulder. I instinctively swung my arm back, but it was stopped in midair by the person’s hand. I dropped my hand, embarrassed, and turned to see who it was. It was the Lloyd kid! He smiled. “Hey, you’re the girl from back at the garden district, right? How’d you learn that move?”

I frowned at him. “I ask you same.” My speech was a little rusty since I never talked really. It didn’t really come naturally to me either. I felt silence was a better ally.

“Oh, it was, uh, just instinct.” Lloyd shrugged. “But what about you?”

“Once trained by man.” I looked around. “Man gone now. I live training place. Come. Show you.” There was something about Lloyd that I felt connected to. Like we both knew what it meant to be different. Lloyd looked as if he was about to say no, so I grinned. “You like, know.” I dived into the crowd, and Lloyd hurriedly followed.

I was testing Lloyd. If he managed to follow me through the crowd without me losing him, then he had good instinct. But the thing was, he was right behind me the whole time, which meant he had _really_ good instinct. Finally, I reached the familiar sewer plate which I always used to go down to my home. Lloyd gave me a strange look. “It’s down… there?”

“Clean. You like. Come.” I rolled my eyes, pushing up my gray sleeves, which revealed my strong muscles, and I pushed the plate aside. Then I started to climb down the ladder. Lloyd followed.

We soon reached the hideout. It was small, with a bed and a couple swords and pieces of armor lying here and there. It was where I lived and trained. I picked up a sword. “Man trained me. Taught me samurai ways. Fun. You like. You good instincts. You be good.”

“S-Samurai ways?” Lloyd stuttered. “I don’t know anyone who was trained to be a samurai.”

“Few.” I shrugged. “Different from most. Like you.”

“You know I’m Lloyd Garmadon?” Lloyd blushed.

“Guessed. Don’t care. Me different. You different. We same.” I tossed him a sword.

“You… you don’t care?” Lloyd stuttered. “But… but _everyone_ cares. _Everyone_ hates me. Nobody wants me near them.”

“You not alone.” I readied my sword. “Nobody like homeless. Think ugly. Think disgusting. Think stupid. First two usually correct, but homeless not stupid. We smart.” In a moment I’d knocked the sword from Lloyd’s hand and I had him pinned to the ground.

“How’d you become homeless?” Lloyd asked awkwardly when I let him stand up.

“Parents died. Sent to orphanage. Ran away. Downside; bad speech.” I sat on my bed. “Fire took parents. Hate fire.”

“Why’d you train to become a samurai?”

I froze. I’d wanted to become a samurai so I could stop the ninja. That would lead to awkward questions about why. That would lead to me explaining how I _was_ stopping them. Which would lead to me explaining how I was the samurai that kept on messing with the ninja. Which would lead to Lloyd telling the news that the samurai that kept messing with the ninja was a homeless girl. This would lead to the social services coming to pick me up.

“Complicated.” I looked away. “Long. You not want.”

Lloyd looked around. “So… why did you invite me down here?”

“You good instincts.” I stood up. “You be great warrior if trained. Could train you.”

Lloyd stared at me for a moment before responding. “Sure. So, what’s your name?”

I blinked at him, and then nodded to the wall where a name was sketched. “Lily Pawn.”


	2. The Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whoever set that store on fire sure is clumsy.

The sun was setting and I was heading for my tunnel. I’d gotten two dollars from the whole day and I bought a hot dog. Luckily they had a drinking fountain, so I wasn’t going to go thirsty.

I’d stopped two bank robberies today when I hadn’t been begging. I wish my friend Layra were here. She was my friend at the orphanage, but I haven’t seen her since I ran away. She had understood me like no one else had. I wonder if she ever thought of me. I hope she did.

It had been two weeks since I’d offered Lloyd training. We’d meet on Tuesdays and Thursday after he got out of school. I made him keep his sessions secret. Someone could get wise.

Just then I heard some people shouting. More like screaming. Then some people started running from a store, flames licking behind them. _Fire!_ I gasped. I ducked behind a wall and put on my armor, dropping my backpack and leaping at the fire with my katanas on my back.

The fire had just started, but it was spreading fast. I heard someone coughing, trying to yell out, but the smoke was too thick. I wrapped a bandana around my nose and mouth and jumped over to them, picking them up and bounding onto the counter. From there I climbed through the hole in the roof that I’d come in and made it outside.

I got to look closer at the person, and I realized it was Lloyd! He was cougher weaker and weaker. I needed to get him somewhere where there wasn’t any smoke. First, though, I pulled a small flask from my belt and made him drink some water. At first he coughed it up, but then he drank some of it. Then I carried him away from the fire.

I was shaking as I ran from the fire. The fire was all I could think about. My parents screaming as they melted. The house burning down before my eyes. The air was cleaner now, so I set Lloyd down in an alleyway, shaking him. I barely managed to speak. “Alright?”

Lloyd coughed again. “I-I’m okay.”

“Home?” I asked.

“M-My home?” Lloyd gasped for air. “It’s on Grove Street. Mom… where’s Mom…” He continued to mutter this as I carried him down the streets. Finally we reached Grove Street and I saw the apartment complexes. “Which home?” I said, looking around with anxiety.

“LLOYD!!!” A woman with orange hair came running out of one of the buildings. She snatched Lloyd. “WHAT HAPPENED TO LLOYD?!?!?!”

Lloyd coughed again. “Mom…”

“Fire.” I explained. “Saved him. Brought home.”

“Thank you!” The woman cried. “I don’t know how I can repay you. At least come into our apartment and have dinner with us. We’d love to have you.”

I paused. A dinner with lots of food? Of course, I’d have to take off my helmet, and then Lloyd would realize who I was. It was tempting, but I couldn’t risk it. “I go home. No thanking. My honor.” Then I ran off, still hungry, without a home, and as lonely as I could be.

***

I was waiting for Lloyd to arrive on Tuesday. I hadn’t seen him since the fire, and I was worried about him. Was he still coughing? Were his burns severe? I was growing impatient as time went by.

Just then Lloyd came in and he rushed over. “Lily! Why didn’t you tell me?”

I blinked. “Tell what?”

“That you were that samurai!” Lloyd said. “The one who’s always messing with the ninja!”

“Don’t know what talking about.” I said quickly.

“You saved me from the fire!” Lloyd burst out. “Why can’t you tell me to my face?”

I looked down at my feet. “Yes. I samurai. Saved you. Saved many.”

“You…” Lloyd blinked. “…You have so little, yet you give what little you have to save Ninjago City. Why? Why don’t you go back to the orphanage and get a family?”

I was silent for a moment before responding. “Need protect people from what happened to me. Don’t want people suffering same.”

Lloyd hugged me. “I’m so sorry, Lily. I always think how I’m so unlucky to have Lord Garmadon as a dad, but you’re living in a sewer saving Ninjago City instead of having a family. You’ve given up so much.”

I stood there, shocked, before hugging him too. “Nothing. Parents proud. Seeing others happy is good. You good, training you good. More fun than begging. More fun than saving.”

Lloyd stepped back. “Speaking of which, let’s get training.”

I tossed him a sword, grinning and taking my own sword. “You get to point.” I winked, swinging my sword at him.


	3. The First Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out Lily has more power than she originally thought.

I leaped onto the top of a building. Ninjago City was once again being attacked by Lord Garmadon. Time to protect Ninjago City from the Secret Ninja Force. I looked for the Fire Mech, which was used by the Fire Ninja. It did the most damage to the city with its flames. The flame-red mechanized suit was shooting flames downtown. I leaped across the roofs, nearing the dangerous vehicle. Three Jelly Subs were flying around the Fire Mech, and it was firing flames to and fro. Buildings were getting burned, but I wasn’t going to let them go up in flames. _Not today, Fire Dork_.

I drew my swords. _If I miss Lloyd’s training session, I’m gonna be so mad. Especially since it’s his_ birthday _!_ Lloyd’s birthday was today, and I was not going to miss it.

I roared with fury, landing on the roof next to the Fire Mech. It was shooting flames everywhere. The Fire Ninja was turning, shooting flames at the Jelly Subs, which were flying right in front of a building. The Fire Mech was powering up for an especially fiery burst. I could see people screaming and running from the mech inside the very building that was in seconds going to go up in fire.

“ _NO_!!!” I screamed, leaping forward to block the flames, my brain not considering what this would do. First off, the flames would melt me in moments, and second off, the flames could easily lick around me and at the building. But I was not thinking, and all I could see was my parents melting before me. _NOT THIS TIME, FIRE DORK_ , I thought, _NEVER AGAIN!!!_

But I did not feel fire melt me; I felt a cooling sensation fill me, and I opened my eyes to see I was glowing white. My feet were sparking with electricity, and my hands raised themselves to shoot out water that froze into ice on contact. I felt energy surge through me like it would never fade. I could see the Fire Ninja’s shocked expression as the Fire Mech staggered backwards, half of it getting frozen with ice. I felt myself vibrating, filled with so much energy that I was starting to blink out of sight. I was vibrating so fast that I was blinking out of existence. I started to scream a silent scream as pain shoot through me like a poisoned arrow. I felt the water that was shooting out of my hands turn to ice, and then my hands started to freeze, and the ice went up my arms. Then, suddenly, water was coming out of my skin and my vision blurred. I was getting drenched in water that was coming from me. The ice continued to creep up my arms until it reached my shoulders. The lightning on my feet fizzed and crackled, becoming flames with sparks of electricity surging through them. My hair caught on fire, although it seemed as if it wasn’t hurting it. My skin was turning brown and felt soft like dirt. And still the energy made me vibrate, and then there was a huge explosion, and I felt myself falling downwards, and I hit the ground. The blow stunned me, and I sat up, my ears buzzing and my head spinning. The Fire Mech was blasting itself with fire to melt the ice. I stood up, stumbling around as my vision blurred and I clutched a wooden pillar. My katanas were nowhere to be seen; my helmet was gone; my armor was dented in multiple places. I fell to my knees, feeling the energy start surging through me again. I screamed once more, my scream echoing through Ninjago City, filling everyone’s ears. “ _AAAAHHHHH_!!!”

From my mouth came fire and it rose into the air. My eyes glowed like ice, and the dirt around me moved on its own as it swallowed my legs. Water spilled from my eyes, drenching me once again. Lightning danced all over me and electrocuted the water, but it did not hurt. All I felt was the pain of the energy. The fire that had arisen from my mouth now morphed above the city into a symbol. It was a circle with a flower, and inside the flower were six dashes, and there was a circle inside that, and inside the circle was a star with four points; one north, one south, one east, and one west. The fire than was sucked back into my mouth and I slumped to the ground unconscious.

***

“Lily! Lily, wake up! Wake up!”

My eyes fluttered open weakly. A blurry figure was above me, and it was raining. My vision cleared and I slowly realized that the figure was Lloyd. He was in some weird outfit, and his blonde hair was a mess. There were tears in his eyes.

“Luh… Lloyd…” I mumbled, blinking slowly. “What… what?”

“Kai told me that you were glowing white and you were shooting water and ice at him and your feet were electrocuted and your skin was turning brown and then you exploded and then you fell to the ground and then the fire- fire- fire-” He seemed unable to speak, and the words had tumbled out very quickly. “I’m the Green Ninja, Lily. My friends are the other ninja. I just need to know if you’ll be okay.”

“Don’t know.” I grumbled. “Hurts. Pain.”

I saw the other ninja come from behind Lloyd. They had their masks off, and my eyes met the Fire Ninja’s. His gaze hardened. “Lloyd, what are you doing? This is the samurai that froze half my mech!”

“She’s my friend!” Lloyd snapped. “Now help me bring her back to the base.”

The Lightning Ninja darted forward to help Lloyd pick me up. They carried me away from the battle ground and away to a warehouse, where they set me down in a chair. I coughed up smoke, and the ninja exchanged glances. Lloyd looked me straight in the eye. “Lily, we-”

Suddenly the door burst open and a familiar old man came in. He had a bamboo stick and a straw hat. My eyes widened. “Wu…”

“I saw the symbol and I came as fast as I could.” Master Wu swooped over.

“Did you see how we beat up Lord Garmadon?” The Fire Ninja bragged.

“I saw you fight.” Master Wu frowned. “But I did not see you win.”

“What?!” The ninja said at once.

“If you are to truly beat Lord Garmadon, you must harness the elements inside you.” Master Wu spun over to the Fire Ninja. “Fire.” Over to the Lightning Ninja. “Lightning.” Over to the Water Ninja. “Water.” Over to the Earth Ninja. “Earth.” Over to the Ice Ninja. “Ice.” Over to Lloyd. “Green.” Over to me. “And finally, all the elements.”

“Green?” Lloyd frowned. “The last time I checked, green was a color. Can I be wind?”

“Green.”

“Earth, green, fire, rolls right off the tongue.”

“Green.”

“Can I be the element of… surprise?”

“No. That is Fuchsia.” “Surprise!”

“What about the samurai?” The Fire Ninja glared at me. “She’s not on our team, why is she here and why is she a part of this?”

“She is part of your team now.” Master Wu nodded to me. “She was once my apprentice, before I trained any of you.”

“What?!” The ninja shouted again.

“Wu taught.” I said in a ragged voice. “Trained. Became samurai. Protect city from ninja.”

The Fire Ninja snorted. “Where’d you learn to talk?”

“Homeless orphan.” I said plainly. “Nothing.”

The ninja were silent after that comment. Lloyd turned to Master Wu. “Uncle Wu, Lily’s a samurai, not a ninja.”

“It does not matter.” Master Wu shook his head. “Ninja and samurai are both excellent warriors, and that is all we need. I must speak with Lloyd and Lily; the rest of you will practice your Spinjitzu.”

“That’s cool!” The Water Ninja grinned.

“For two hours! And read my book!”

The other ninja groaned as Master Wu led Lloyd and I onto the deck of a fine ship. I looked around in awe at the beauty of it. “Where get?” I asked Master Wu. Master Wu cleared his throat. “A question for another day. Lloyd and Lily, soon I won’t be here.”

“What?!” Lloyd exclaimed.

“I’m _super_ , _super_ old.” Master Wu rolled his eyes. “I need you two to lead the team. You two walk two different paths from the others. Lloyd, you must walk the path that only the son of Garmadon can walk. Lily, you must walk the path that only an orphaned samurai can walk.”

“Wu, cannot.” I murmured. “Ninja destroy; I protect.”

“And the others will never listen to Lily.” Lloyd added. “They hate her.”

“That must change, and it will change.” Master Wu tapped me on my shoulder with his bamboo stick. “They will learn that some do things for a true cause. Lily, you must show them how to protect Ninjago City not just from Lord Garmadon, but from themselves.”

I was silent for a moment before staring into Master Wu’s eyes. “No. Protect Ninjago, not destroy. Not work with ninja.” I spun around then and leaped away. “Lily!” Lloyd called after me. “Wait!”

My body still hurt all over, but I ignored the pain and continued towards home. Wherever my feet touched the ground, ice would appear. Whenever my hand touched something, it became wet. My skin was burning hot, and it felt soft like dirt. Energy coursed through my veins, and I was vibrating a little. Fear mounted upon fear that someone would see me and run screaming. That I would blink out of existence again. I ducked around corner and began to cry, the ground around me turning to wet ice. And that’s when I began to cry.

I never cried ever. I never broke from the stress. I never wanted to run to someone’s arms and be held tight. But right now, it all came crashing over me. Hungry was gnawing at my stomach, and my throat was dry with thirst. My newfound powers were confusing me, and making me scared- why had they suddenly appeared? Why did I have to be a samurai? Why did I have to protect Ninjago City from the ninja? Why did I ever choose that?

“Lily?” Lloyd came into the alleyway and saw me crying. He ran over to me. “Lily, what’s wrong?”

“W-Why me?” I cried. I threw my arms around him and cried harder. He blinked in surprise before hugging me back.


	4. Fire Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily doesn't really like fire.

I stopped being samurai for a whole week. The only thing I did was beg for money, and I avoided anywhere that I knew Lloyd went. Lloyd didn’t come on Tuesday or Thursday. He probably knew I didn’t want company. The ninja hadn’t been around. All I knew was that I couldn’t handle it anymore. But I couldn’t go back to the orphanage, either. I just couldn’t.

Right now, all I wanted was my parents. Their names were Jenny and Theo. I could just imagine crawling through my old home, and Jenny would run up to me and pick me up, spinning around in circles. I’d always laugh at that. And Theo always let me watch the old grownup movies with him, even though I was two. Other than that, I only sort of remember what they looked like. I wanted to know them so much; I wanted to spend time with them. But they were gone all because of the fire.

Currently, I was sitting on my bed with a hot dog and my flask of water. In a few moments I gulped down the hot dog and took a deep sip of water. My stomach quieted and my throat felt cool. I hadn’t yet learned to control my powers yet, so I couldn’t just summon water for me to drink. My one blanket shrouded me, but I still shivered with cold.

Just then I heard screams coming from above. I climbed up the ladder and pushed the plate up slightly. I could see people running and screaming everywhere, and Lord Garmadon’s Shark Army as well. Ducking back inside, I put all my armor on. Then I stopped. Why was I doing this? I quit being a samurai. I would most certainly run into the ninja if I went out there.

 _It will be as enemies, as it has always been._ I thought. _I will pretend we have never met before. It will be like old times._ But would it really be? With me knowing Lloyd so well?

I climbed out of the sewer and jumped out onto the street. The moment my heart started to beat faster, the ground around me turned to ice and panic started to well in my chest. _Not again! I can’t control it!_ Then I took a deep breath. _Breathe. Focus._ The ground slowly returned to normal and I smirked. _I can do this._

I leaped up the side of the roof, pulling my katanas out. The Fire Ninja was easy to spot, and Lloyd and the Blue Ninja were soaring above the city. I finally spotted the Water Ninja and the Earth Ninja. But I was going to head for the Fire Ninja. If I could control my powers, I could block his fire with my water.

Leaping across roofs, I made my way downtown toward the Fire Mech. My blood seemed to boil. The Fire Ninja was even giving the buildings he was firing at a second glance! I yelled a battle cry and charged forward, focusing on the flames. _Water, water, water!_ But instead of water coming from my hands, flame met fire! I tried to stop, but the flame wouldn’t stop coming. “No!” I shook my hands, and finally the flames stopped. _This isn’t right!_ I sighed. _I guess I won’t be using my powers. Back to the fire distinguisher!_

I scaled down the side of a building, grabbed a nearby fire distinguisher, and then climbed back up. The Fire Mech was shooting out flames again. And then a building caught on fire.

Right before my eyes, I could see people heating up. Just like my parents. The fire distinguisher dropped from my hand. All I could see was Jenny and Theo.

_“Gaga!” I squeaked, laughing as Jenny twirled me around. She set me on the counter. “Who wants some apple juice? Does my little Lily want apple juice?”_

_“Haha!” I laughed again. Jenny got some apple juice out of the fridge and handed me a glass. “Here is some apple juice for my little Lily!”_

_Just then, Theo burst in, coughing and gasping. “FIRE!!! JENNY, LILY, GET OUT!!!”_

_Jenny yanked me up and dashed for the door with Theo. But the door was mostly in flames, and only a small hole was the exit now. Jenny exchanged glances with Theo before stuffing me through. “Go, Lily, go!”_

_I blinked at her. “Ga?”_

_Then the door completely burst into flames, and I heard screams echo through the house. I spotted them through one of the windows melting down into puddles. I started to wail. “GAAAA!!!”_

“NOOOO!!!” I screamed, shooting water from my hands, tears spilling down my cheeks. I was not going to see that happen again. The flames hissed and disappeared as more water appeared and covered them. But I did not stop. Not even when every flicker of fire was gone. I continued to spray water all over the building. The thought of seeing people die because of fire was too hard to handle. “MOM, DAD, SORRY!!!” I cried, looked up to the sky. “SORRY!!!” And I realized why. I’d dismissed the memory before now, because it had seemed so out of the range of possibility. But now I knew the memory wasn’t my imagination.

_I crawled around the playroom happily, hiding under Theo’s desk. Jenny was looking around for me. “Where’s my Lily? Where’s my little Lily?” I giggled, and then became entranced by the wood on the desk with all its patterns. When I touched the wood, it burned, and a little flame appeared. I giggled again, and Jenny’s face appeared. “There’s my little Lily!” She swooped me away to the kitchen._

“STARTED FIRE!!!” I wailed. “MY FAULT!!! SORRY!!!”

The water stopped coming from my hands, and I was left there sopping wet and crying. “Sorry… sorry… Mom… Dad…” I could nearly hear Jenny’s voice. _Why are you crying, my little Lily? There’s nothing to be sorry about. It was just an accident. There’s no need to cry, my little Lily._

“Mom.” I whispered, tears still falling from my eyes. Everything around me- Lord Garmadon, Lloyd, the ninja, Master Wu, everything- had faded away. I could see Jenny and Theo in front of me. _It’s a hallucination._ A thought said from the back of my mind. _You’re going_ crazy _!_ But I wanted them so much; I paid no attention to this thought. “Mom, Dad, sorry.”

“Little Lily,” Jenny crouched beside me, “It’s not your fault. You were two, and you had no idea what you were doing. You had no control over your powers, as you do not now.”

Theo sat beside me as well. “Lily, we’ll love you no matter what. But you need to move on. You need to start a new family, and live in the present, not dwell on the past. We will always be in your heart, but you need to make peace with the fire. _Make peace with the fire._ ”

Then my parents were whisked away in the wind. My eyes widened. “No. Back! Back! No! BACK!!!” I scrabbled at the ground, desperately searching for my parents. “MOM!!! DAD!!! BACK!!!” _Make peace with the fire. Make peace with the fire…_ The words echoed in my mind. “Peace… fire…” I murmured, taking a deep breath. “Will, Mom, Dad, will.”

It was as if something clutching my chest released me, and I felt free for the first time in my whole life since after the fire. I breathed in deeply. “Thank, Mom, Dad.” Only then did I realize that Lord Garmadon was standing on Ninjago Tower, and Lloyd was up there, firing the Ultimate Weapon. And only then did I realize what was going on. “LLOYD, NO!!!” I screamed.

The Ultimate Weapon fired, but nothing happened. I stared dumbly at the laser pointing straight at Lord Garmadon. Lord Garmadon started to laugh, and I started heading for Ninjago Tower. As I climbed up to the top, I could hear him saying, “Ninjago City is mine!”

I knew exactly what Lloyd had done. I could barely speak. “No, no, no.”

That’s when the cat attacked.


	5. Meowthra

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kai's kinda mean, but Lily has a temper too.

Meowthra, with all its nine million hairs, struck. It knocked down on of the buildings. People screamed and ran. I stared dumbly at Lloyd. “No, no, no.”

The Shark Army grabbed both me and Lloyd, securing us and taking the Ultimate Weapon. Lord Garmadon cackled. “Now, time to get rid of the ninja.” He aimed for the Fire Mech, and Lloyd’s eyes widened. “NO!!!” I felt no pity for the Fire Ninja as Meowthra leaped onto the Fire Mech. All I felt was cold pleasure.

Next was the Quake Mech. Meowthra tackled it to the ground, breaking it with one swipe. I felt something growing inside me, something I did not recognize. _Now the Earth Ninja will no longer cause earthquakes, which cause homes to fall and businesses to be destroyed._

The Quake Mech was followed by the Ice Tank Mech. Meowthra ripped the caterpillar tracks right off it, scattering the remains. Ice froze my veins. _People will no longer be in danger of being rolled over now._

The Lightning Jet Mech was next. Meowthra gave a mighty leap, grabbing the flying machine right from the air. The Lightning Ninja ejected and floated safely to the ground in a parachute. _No more danger of the power lines having a shortage._

Finally, Meowthra went after the Water Strider Mech. Meowthra plucked it from the water, tossing it into the air and ripping the legs off it. The cat did not care that its paws were wet; it only cared for its prey. Not even now did I feel a stab of pity. _The windows and walls of buildings will not suffer any longer from the legs of the Water Strider Mech._

Lord Garmadon strode forward. “Now I only have to defeat the Green Ninja.” He kicked the Dragon Mech off the roof and down to where Meowthra awaited. “Now Ninjago City is mine! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!”

Some Jelly Subs carried Lord Garmadon’s volcano onto the top of Ninjago Tower, and everyone started to party. Lloyd’s eyes filled with tears, and Lord Garmadon laughed. “Is the Green Ninja going to cry? IS THE GREEN NINJA GOING TO CRY?”

“No.” Lloyd sniffed. Then he pulled off his mask. “Dad.”

Everyone froze. Lord Garmadon narrowed his eyes, looking closer at Lloyd. “Luh-Lloyd?”

“Yes, it’s me, your son.” Lloyd snapped. “And it’s _Lloyd_!”

“No, no,” Lord Garmadon corrected, “L-L-O-Y-D. Luh-Lloyd. I named you.”

“You ruined my life!” Lloyd shouted.

“I wasn’t even _in_ your life!” Lord Garmadon shrugged. “How could I have ruined it?”

Lloyd shook his head disbelievingly. “I wish you weren’t my father.” Then he leaped up, grabbing the Ninjago City Flag, and glided down to the ground. I stared at Lord Garmadon. “Garmadon,” I murmured, “Would thank, but destroyed.” Then I scaled down the side of Ninjago Tower and all the way down to the ground. Then I made my way to the Secret Ninja Base.

I made it to the Secret Ninja Base to see Lloyd being confronted by his ninja friends. The Lightning Ninja shook his head. “We used to be the only ones who didn’t hate you, but now we hate you.”

“STOP!!!” I yelled. The ninja turned around. “Not dealing with! Terrible father! Imagine you having father like! Wanting stop, only way most extreme!”

“I can’t understand you,” The Fire Ninja glowered at her, “Because you talk so weird.”

I stormed up to him and slapped as hard as I could on his face. He stumbled backwards, clutching his cheek. “Don’t care words. Complicated. Useless. Parents told to ‘make peace with the fire’. If means you, will not listen.”

Kai narrowed his eyes at me. “You’re crazy. Your parents died. They’re _gone_.”

That’s when he hit the last nerve. I screeched with fury, fire appearing in my hands, and I raised my hands to discontinue him, but then I stopped. His face displayed pure fear. And then I realized what I had been about to do. The fury seeped away from me and the fire disappeared. “Sorry,” I murmured. _Make peace with the fire, make peace with the fire._ “Sorry.”

“No,” Kai said quietly, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Uncle Wu’s gone.” Lloyd looked over at the water where the remnants of the _Destiny’s Bounty_ lay. “What are we going to do?”

“It seems you have learned your lesson.” Everyone jumped as Master Wu appeared beside them. “Master Wu!” Everyone cried at once.

“We thought you were dead!” Lloyd exclaimed.

“Of course I’m not dead,” Master Wu rolled his eyes, “I’m a Spinjitzu Master. It would take a lot more to kill me. But it has taught you a lesson. Lloyd, you have awoken the great monster… Meowthra.”

“Meowthra?” The ninja blinked.

I sighed, “Meowthra. Great creature, destroy things. Only Ultimate Ultimate Weapon defeat.”

“The Ultimate Ultimate Weapon lies on the other side of the island.” Master Wu explained. “Through the Uncrossable Jungle, up the Unclimable Mountain, and in the Temple of Fragile Foundations. But since you are not ready, only Lily and I shall go.”

“What?!” The ninja cried. Kai glared at me. “How come Lily gets to go and not us?”

“Because she is a fully trained samurai.” Master Wu sniffed. “So, bye!” He darted away, and I quickly followed him. The ninja chased after him. “Wait, Uncle Wu!” Lloyd rushed forward. “Please, I know I failed, but I promise I won’t this time.”

“Do your friends still trust you?” Master Wu looked over at the other ninja. The ninja all murmured no. Master Wu shrugged. “It is a long journey. They may learn to trust you once again.” The ninja cheered and they headed off for the Uncrossable Jungle.


	6. Cyclops Gary and the Bounty Hunters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Imagine seeing mosquitos of that size and knowing they could kill you if you let them suck your blood for too long?

When we entered the jungle, I immediately felt uncomfortable. I’d memorized every street in Ninjago City, so being in a place I didn’t recognize felt strange. I nonetheless stayed at the back of the group, keeping an eye out for danger. Besides Lloyd, none of them looked back at me- with the others not caring about me and Master Wu being the leader. Lloyd kept looking back at me, though. I don’t know why he would.

I’ve learned Lloyd’s friends’ names. The Fire Ninja is Kai, the Water Ninja is Nya, the Lightning Ninja is Jay, the Earth Ninja is Cole, and the Ice Ninja is Zane. I haven’t spoken to Kai since we left Ninjago City. I know Jenny and Theo told me to make peace with the fire, but I just couldn’t, if it meant make peace with Kai. I wasn’t sure how I felt about the fire that killed my parents. I think I may finally be over it.

We finally reached some tall pillars of rocks that stretched out across an abyss. Master Wu played his flute as he jumped across the rocks, while the ninja stumbled after him. I jumped across with ease, but I kept looking down. I wondered what was down there. _Thousands of human skeletons? Creatures of all kinds? Evil warlords and sorceresses?_

“Lily?” I was snapped from my thoughts, and I realized I was standing on one of the pillars, leaning dangerously towards the abyss. Lloyd had taken my hand to bring me back to the present, and my arm felt tingly all over. _What’s wrong with me?_ I thought, blinking at Lloyd.

“You looked like you were going to fall.” Lloyd blinked back, and then blushed, realizing that he was still holding my hand. He let go and turned to follow the others. “Are you coming?”

I nodded, shivering. The abyss had done something to me. I felt like I was being pulled down to the darkness. But I managed to jump away from it, following Lloyd.

At night we’d always set up camp, and I wander a little ways’ from them. I enjoyed looking up at the night sky through the treetops, but most especially the moon. The moon always glowed huge and bright. I’d always take off my helmet then, let the breeze ruffle my hair and breathe fresh night air. Other than that, I always kept my helmet on.

That night, a few hours after we passed the abyss, it grew dark and we set up camp. I wandered away as usual, taking off my helmet, sitting down and looking up at the moon.

“Mom, Dad,” I whispered, “Speak. Please.” The wind grew louder for a moment, then stilled. I sighed. _Please talk to me._

Suddenly I heard a twig snap behind me and in a moment I’d drawn my sword and put it to my intruder’s throat. “ _Please_ don’t chop my head off.” I relaxed as I realized it was Lloyd. “Sorry,” I muttered.

“It’s okay,” Lloyd smiled, sitting down beside me, “I shouldn’t have snuck up on you like that. I should know by now.”

“Look moon,” I pointed upwards. Lloyd looked up. “Wow. I can’t believe I haven’t noticed the moon by now. It’s so beautiful… like you. I mean- uh, like your armor, yes, your armor is really cool.” I gave him an inquiring look, and he blushed deeply. “Uh, remember the time when you offered me training?” He changed the subject. “I remember those days.”

“Month.” I frowned.

“Well, yes, it was a month ago, but it seems so long ago.” Lloyd looked down at his feet. They were silent for a moment before Lloyd spoke again. “Lily, I…” He stopped, and I tilted my head questioningly. “Lily…” Then he leaned forward and kissed me.

I was paralyzed with shock. Lloyd stopped. “I-I’m sorry, I shouldn’t-” I cut him off by kissing him. When we finally stopped, Lloyd blinked. “Ever since you saved me, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

“First time,” I murmured. “Felt connection. Meant to be.” Then we started kissing again, and I felt something strange inside me. I think it was what you would call happiness.

***

The next day, we traveled farther into the forest, me and Lloyd sticking close together. The deeper we went into the forest, the more eerie it became. But eerie as it was, Master Wu found a real path through the forest and we were now traveling along it.

Eventually, Jay spoke up. “How long are we going to keep walking? I’m covered in mosquito bites.”

“Mosquito bites?” Master Wu stopped, looking back at Jay. Indeed, Jay was red all over and covered in mosquito bites. That is when we all noticed the mosquitoes.

There were millions of mosquitoes swarming in the air, but they were silent, and they’d only gone after Jay so far. But as we stopped walking, the mosquitoes noticed, and soon they were biting everyone. Master Wu started to run along the path. “Follow me! Quickly!”

We ran as fast as we could, the mosquitoes chasing after us. After a few moments, we rounded a bend and saw a small cottage up ahead. The door opened an older man a young man appeared, their eyes widening. “Get in!” The older man gestured for them to come inside. I was too focused on the mosquitoes to notice that the older man only had one eye, and where the other one should be there was nothing. The ninja, Master Wu and I leaped into the house, the young man slamming the door before the mosquitoes could get in. The ninja lay panting on the floor while I stood up, shivering.

The house was small, but it was packed. There were many shelves, and one of them was filled with bottles of a strange white liquid. The other shelves were filled with old books and weapons of all kinds. I blinked at the two men. “Who are you?”

“I’m Cyclops Gary,” The older man held out his hand for me to shake, “And this is my son, Warren. I’m nicknamed Cyclops Gary because of my one eye. The Big Snake took the other one, and don’t ask for that story. Now, who in the name of Mike are you?”

“I am Wu, and these are my students, Lloyd, Lily, Nya, Kai, Cole, Zane, and Jay,” Master Wu explained. “Those mosquitoes out there- they are Lickers, aren’t they?”

“You certainly know your animal life, Wu.” Cyclops Gary nodded. “Yes, they are Lickers. Disgusting creatures, most people mistake them for mosquitoes. But they are much more dangerous than those pests.”

“Um, what are ‘Lickers’?” Jay gulped.

“Lickers are bugs that come from human skin.” Warren said quietly. “If any humans brush against a plant called Trics, you will receive a rash. If you scratch the rash, they are very itchy, and then from the rash will come a Licker. If you scratch a rash too much, eventually you’ll run out of flesh and you die because you are only bones.”

The ninja gaped at Warren. Lloyd spoke up finally. “So is there a cure?”

“Luckily, you found the right place.” Cyclops Gary took one of the bottles of white liquid from the shelf and squirted some onto his hand. Then he spread it onto Cole’s arm, and the rashes disappeared. “I created a cure a while back because Warren just couldn’t stop getting the rashes. I have plenty, and I can make plenty more, so use as much as you like.”

The rashes on my skin were itching like crazy, but I ignored the urge to scratch them and instead put the lotion on. The rashes disappeared and I breathed deeply with relief. The others had already put the lotion onto their skin- we all wanted the rashes gone- so we put the bottles back onto the shelf. Wu dipped his head to Cyclops Gary and Warren. “Thank you, but we should really be on our way now.”

“Oh, you can’t leave until tomorrow.” Cyclops Gary shook his head. “The Lickers won’t leave until then, so _you_ can’t leave until then.”

Just then the door was knocked upon. Cyclops Gary’s eyes widened. “Who could possibly be out there in the middle of those creatures?” He peered out the window cautiously, and his face darkened. “Warren, hide them wherever you can, then come straight back here.”

“Who is it, Father?” Warren asked.

“Just do as I say!” Cyclops Gary hissed. “And hurry!”

Warren looked around the room, and then rushed over to a closet, opening and gesturing for us to get inside. It was a very big closet, so we all fit inside, although it was a tight squeeze and everyone was squished together. I hissed at Cole, whose elbow was jabbing my stomach. “Move, Cole!”

“You move, Lily!” Kai growled. “Your foot is on my face!”

We all heard someone coming into the house and we all went silent. I heard Cyclops Gary speak. “What do you want, Killian? I told I’m done with bounty hunting.”

“That will change, Gary.” A man’s voice came from nearby the closet, and I assumed he was Killian. “So, how are things going here? This must be Warren. He’s grown up so much since you and Ellanore were together. What do you think, Butterfly?”

Another man spoke up, and his voice was squeaky. He must be Butterfly. “He’s still a little small. How old is he now, eighteen? Why, he’s old enough to become a bounty hunter himself.”

“My son isn’t going to be a bounty hunter!” Cyclops Gary yelled. Everyone was silent for a moment before he spoke again. “So, where’s Ellanore?”

“Ellanore’s location is a little ways’ away with Whiplash.” Yet another man spoke, and his voice sounded a lot like Zane’s, except not robotic and softer. “She said, she did not want to go through the Lickers, and she did not want, to go near you.”

“Oh, Ghostie, why are you still being a bounty hunter?” Cyclops Gary asked. “I thought you wanted to become a ninja teacher.”

“I, have not raised enough money, to build a monastery.” The soft-speaking man, obviously Ghostie, said. “Soon, I will, though.”

“Enough with the chit-chat!” Another man spoke up. His voice was rough, and the man was probably very old. “Lord Garmadon is looking for six ninja, an old man, and a samurai. We’ve followed their tracks to the Uncrossable Jungle, and we all know that you know about everything that goes on in here. So, you’re going to help us find them.”

“I told you,” Cyclops Gary yelled, “I’m done with bounty hunting!”

“I’m pretty sure,” Ghostie cleared his throat, “The refugees, are in this location.”

“Search the house!” Killian ordered. “Do not leave a single thing unturned or unopened!”

“Don’t you dare touch anything!” Cyclops Gary shouted, and a humming sound filled the air. The bounty hunters stopped, and I heard footsteps heading for the door. “Now, now, calm down, Gary, there’s nothing to get upset about.” The old man said.

“Shut up, Jacob!” Cyclops Gary hissed. “Now, before I tell you to leave, I want to know where Leon is. Where is Leon?”

Killian gulped. “We were crossing an abyss by these giant pillars of rocks when he started staring down into it, and then he fell. We don’t know what happened to him.”

"Liars!” Cyclops Gary roared.

“We are telling, the truth.” Ghostie said. “So please, put the gun away, and we can talk, without feeling like we are going, to get shot.”

Something hit the floor hard, and I guessed it was the gun Cyclops Gary had been holding apparently. Then a scream sounded, and the gun hummed again. “PUT MY SON DOWN!!!”

“If you don’t tell us where the fugitives are in three days, then he dies.” Killian said. “Come on, let’s go.”

I heard footsteps going out the door and then there was silence. Then I heard someone weeping, and I pushed myself out of the door, which made all the others fall out on top of me. Master Wu rushed to Cyclops Gary’s side. “We will find their camp and we will rescue Warren.”

The house was a mess, probably because the bounty hunters had started to search it. I stepped forward in front of Cyclops Gary. “Who people?”

Cyclops Gary looked up, tears in his eyes. “I used to be a bounty hunter, and I worked with them. There was Killian the Snake, The Butterfly Man of Yorn, Jacob the Old, Ghostie the Invisible, Leon the Lion, and… Ellanore, with her pet tiger Whiplash. Ellanore is Warren’s mother. But eventually I realized that I couldn’t handle being a bounty hunter, so I took Warren and retired here. Ellanore wasn’t ever going to leave the job, so we broke up.”

“We _will_ save Warren.” Lloyd put a hand on Cyclops Gary. “We will.”


	7. The Bounty Hunters' Camp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is certainly one odd bunch of bounty hunters.

The next day’s night, Master Wu, Cyclops Gary and I snuck out of the house and headed for the camp. Master Wu had proclaimed the mission, as he put it, ‘too dangerous for untrained students’, so the ninja had stayed behind.

I was not very happy about sneaking around, being a samurai, but it wasn’t too bad. Since I’d been a beggar for a year now, I had to learn about being quick and silent.

Master Wu had told us the plan back at the house. He’d given Cyclops Gary and me a very dark look. “We shall sneak to the camp, where Cyclops Gary will come out and say that he knows where the fugitives are. While the bounty hunters are distracted, we shall sneak attack them, and with the element of surprise we shall win.”

“So, Fuchsia help?” “Surprise!”

“No, _definitely_ not. Anyways, Cyclops Gary will know the right moment to attack, so he will signal us to attack by snapping three times, and then coughing.”

Now the time for the mission to be carried out had come. I clenched the sword in my hand until my knuckles turned white. I wanted to just leap out and attack the bounty hunters, just like that. But I held myself back and watched the scene unfurl before me as Cyclops Gary strolled out into the camp.

The camp was very small; it consisted of a campfire and five sleeping bags, as well as five people and a huge tiger. The tiger laid beside the fire, letting the heat warm its belly, and a beautiful woman petted its head. The woman held a bamboo stick, and atop of her black hair sat a straw hat like Master Wu’s. She wore a light green dress with pins sticking out the back. Next to the woman stood a small man in black with a straw hat as well, but it was black unlike the woman’s His face was masked by a black cloth, and only his eyes could be seen. He wore black clothes and a red ribbon around his waist. Across the campfire was an old man with a long white beard that reached his toes, and he head a scythe in his hand. On his head was something not unlike a crown, and his shoulders were plated with steel armor. Next to him was a man dressed in a butterfly suit, complete with wings and antenna and a striped costume, and in his hand was a flower. The last person beside the fire was a man with black hair put up in a bun, with red armor. On the red armor was painted a snake.

I could guess that the butterfly man was indeed the Butterfly Man of Yorn, and the old man was Jacob the Old. The woman had to be Ellanore, but I couldn’t tell out of the other two which one was Ghostie and which one was Killian. Of course, Killian’s title was ‘Killian the Snake’, so the man with the snake painted on his armor was probably Killian.

Indeed, the snake man stood up and from his mouth came Killian’s voice. “We should put out the fire. The Lickers might come if we don’t.”

“It seems you do not know your animals, Killian.” Ellanore said. It was an elderly voice, but it was strong as well. “You are mistaking Lickers for moths. Lickers hate light and try to stay away from it as much as possible. So keeping the fire going will actually protect us from them.”

“Whatever.” Killian growled. He sat back down and everyone was silent for a moment. Then Ghostie looked up. “I, miss Leon. He was, a good person. I hope, we can get revenge, on that abyss. Maybe, we can fill it with water, and then we can swim across, and then we can laugh and say, ‘ha ha’.”

“I’m going to go feed our guest.” Killian stood once more, and I noticed a shape next to one of the trees surrounding the clearing. It was Warren! He seemed completely fine, but his eyes were blank. Ellanore stopped Killian, blocking him with her stick. “He will only take food from me. I shall feed him.” In the next moment she was over at Warren’s side, holding up a granola bar for him to eat.

Cyclops Gary stepped out of the bushes where they were hiding and the firelight fell across him. Everyone was silent until Ellanore stepped forward. “Ah, hello dear. I almost didn’t recognize our son when they brought him back. He has grown so much.”

“Back?” Cyclops Gary snorted. “No, I’m here to bring him back. Back home where he belongs.”

“We told you that we’d only let you have your son back if you told us where the fugitives are.” Killian hissed.

“Yes, you did, and I know where they are.” Cyclops Gary nodded. “A couple hours after you left, they came to me and they are sheltering in my house.”

Master Wu and I exchanged a horrified glance. Cyclops Gary had betrayed us! Would he tell them about us too?

Just then, as Cyclops Gary winked five times at Ellanore with his one eye. She blinked, grinned, and then wacked Killian in the stomach with her stick, sending him onto the ground as he gasped for breath. Ghostie’s eyes widened, but then in two moments flat he’d knocked down Jacob and was after Butterfly. “He hasn’t seen me yet,” He said as Butterfly punched him.

Master Wu and I jumped out to help, but Ellanore and Ghostie had already defeated the others. Ellanore grinned. “That felt great! I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time. Those guys are _idiots_!”

“What?” I asked.

Ellanore smirked, and as she spoke she went over to the tiger, presumably Whiplash, and petted its head. “Ghostie and I have been planning to… well, get revenge on the others for something that I do not need to mention. Leon was part of the plan until… well, until he fell over the abyss. Anyways, those guys were so distracted by Gary that it seemed the perfect time to attack. Gary, I need to speak with you- and Warren.” The two of them went over to Warren, who had watched the fight with awe.

I kicked a tree. “I wanted fight. _Seriously_?”

Master Wu patted my shoulder. “You will fight someday, Lily. But now we must journey on to the Temple of Fragile Foundations.”

“I, have nowhere to go.” Ghostie said. “Maybe, I could go with you.”

Master Wu gave him a cautious look before shrugging. “That’s fine with me, as long as you can keep up with us.”

I looked at Ghostie. His eyes were wide with curiosity, and he had done very well in the squabble. Maybe he could help them- maybe. I held out my hand for him to shake. “Lily. You Ghostie?”

“Yes. I, am Ghostie.” Ghostie said in his weird speech, shaking my hand. “I have a feeling, we shall get along.”


	8. The Bridge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now they're back on their mission, all the while having a debate about who is which MCU character.

We returned to Cyclops Gary’s house, where the ninja were waiting. Lloyd dashed forward and hugged me. “We thought you guys had been captured. We were about to come out and follow you.”

“We okay.” I gasped out, and he blushed, letting me go. “Ghostie join us. Ellanore sole bounty hunter. Whiplash with her. Warren saved.”

“How about Master Wu explains it?” Kai glared at me. “That way we can understand what happened.”

Master Wu cleared his throat. “Ellanore and Ghostie decided to help us. They took out the others, and Ghostie will be joining us in our journey. Ellanore, with her pet tiger Whiplash, has decided to become a sole bounty hunter. She and Cyclops Gary decided to let Warren choose where to go. He chose to come with us.”

The ninja looked over at Ghostie and Warren, who were sitting on the floor. Warren smiled. “Ghostie and I were great friends before Cyclops Gary and I left the team. I could not bear to see him leave me again.”

Cyclops Gary stared sadly at his son. His eyes sparkled with regret, but there was also resolution in them. “You’ll do well, Warren. If you ever want to come home, I’m always here.”

“Of course, Father.” Warren hugged him. “When this quest is finished, I promise I will come home. We can figure things out then.”

I looked over at Ghostie. Ghostie was staring at Warren with a happy gaze. His eyes were filled with something I had never seen before. _What is going on in that mind of his?_

“Come.” Master Wu swooped to the door. “We have delayed long enough. We must leave.”

***

I had definitely underestimated Ghostie. Ghostie was just as fast as Master Wu, if not faster, and very smart. Warren must have learned a thing or two from Ghostie back when they were friends, because he was in the middle of the group the whole time through the jungle. I stayed in the back like usual, making sure no one fell or slipped so we could keep up the pace.

We soon reached a sunny clearing and Master Wu stopped. “You must practice your ninja skills. Blend into your surroundings, ninja.”

The ninja hid behind some trees, while I, with my black armor, slunk into the shadows, as did Ghostie and Warren. Master Wu rolled his eyes at the ninja. “You see how they did it? That’s what you should have done. You’re _unbelievable_.” Then he stiffened. “Wait. I feel the presence of a great evil.” Then he zoomed off into the trees.

Ghostie looked around. “I do not feel, the presence of evil. He must be, very wise.”

“Is wise.” I agreed. Then I snorted with laughter. “Must not trained long, I samurai but know more being stealthy.”

“ _Shut_ up!” Kai retorted.

“OOOOHHHH someone mad?” I grinned.

“Language!” Lloyd said suddenly. Everyone turned to look at him. Kai blinked. “Guys, can we consider that Captain America just said ‘language’?”

I’m not Captain America, and...” Lloyd sighed. “…It just sort of slipped out, Iron Kai.”

“Oh, do not even start, Cap.”

“I will, Stark.”

“CAN YOU NINJA JUST SHUT UP AND CONSIDER THE FACT THAT THIS OLD MAN AND I ARE FIGHING?!?!?!” Lord Garmadon yelled, and we all gasped as we realized that Master Wu and Lord Garmadon were fighting.

“He hasn’t seen me yet.” Ghostie said.

“I can see you!”

“He hasn’t seen me yet.”

Nya sighed. “Can we all just agree that I’m Black Widow? Because I totally am Black Widow. Jay, I dub you Bruce Banner.”

“Bruce Banner?!” Jay exclaimed. “I’m more like Thor.”

Cole rolled his eyes. “Dude, _I’m_ Thor.”

Zane beamed. “I must be Vision. Hurray!”

I nodded. “Makes sense, I Scarlet Witch.”

“Oh! Oh!” Jay said excitedly. “That leaves Master Wu as Nick Fury!” We all looked at him. “What?”

Ghostie and Warren stood up and chased after Master Wu and Lord Garmadon, who were now battling on the Bridge of Fallen Mentors. I followed, and so did the others. Master Wu had trapped Lord Garmadon in a cage. Lord Garmadon sighed. “There’s one thing, old man; you forgot to count your butterflies.”

“I did,” Master Wu counted, “One, two, three, four, five, six-”

“Seven!” Lord Garmadon hissed. Master Wu looked up to see one of the seven deadly butterflies flying in front of him, and in desperation to get away, he fell over the side of the bridge.

Everything seemed to stop. “Wu!” I screamed. Master Wu fell into the rushing river, where he resurfaced, clinging onto his straw hat. “STAY ON THE RIGHT PATH TO FIND YOUR INNER PEACE!” He shouted as he was swept away.

WU!” I screamed again. Nya frowned. “Did he say… inner peace?”

Ghostie jumped across the bridge nimbly and Lord Garmadon growled at him. “You were one of the bounty hunters I hired! Why are you working for them now?!”

“I, was never working, for you.” Ghostie crossed his arms. “I, was working, for myself.”

I leaped across the bridge, fire burning in my eyes. “Should kill!” My hands started to burn with fire, but Lloyd stopped me. “Wait, Lily! Don’t kill him!”

Lord Garmadon seemed to be seething now. “Okay, Lloyd. Open the cage right now. I will count to three. One…” He glared at Lloyd. “Two… three.” Then he frowned. “Huh, I thought that was supposed to work with kids. Anyways, if you want to get through this forest, you’re going to need me to guide you.”

“Don’t need!” I spat. “Evil!”

The evil warlord looked from me to the other ninja. “Does anybody know what this girl’s saying? I mean, does she even speak English?” The ninja spoke their agreement, and I sent a torrent of water at Lord Garmadon. He spluttered out water, glaring at me. “Well, looks whose the tough one.”

I cleared my throat. “I _can_ speak proper English, but I do not dare do so, for I do not see the meaning for extra words.” Everyone’s jaws dropped, and I continued. “So, speak few.”

Lord Garmadon rolled his eyes. “ _Anyways_ , you don’t know you’re way through this forest. Only I know the way, now that Wu is gone. You’re going to need all the help you can get.”

Lloyd glared at him. “We don’t need him. Master Wu told us to take the right path.” The other ninja muttered their disagreement, and Lloyd let out a long sigh. “Fine. We take him.”

As the other ninja went to pick Garmadon’s cage up, I went right up to his face, snarling. “One out place, dead.”


	9. The Hole in the Ground

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Weird stuff is happening to Lily.

We walked down the path for quite some time. I stared at the ground, ignoring the quiet conversations between the other ninja. Then I thought I saw something on the ground. I stopped, watching as the ground suddenly grew a small hole, which grew even bigger. It was now a big circle, and the depth of it went on endlessly. I stared into it and wondered what was down there. _Thousands of human skeletons? Creatures of all kinds? Evil warlords and sorceresses?_

I felt myself leaning forward, until I was nearly falling into the hole. I didn’t mind though- I could only think of what could be down there. _What could-?_

“Lily!” I blinked and the hole disappeared. Lloyd was staring back at me, his eyes wide. “What was that?” The Green Ninja asked.

I put a hand to my head, suddenly feeling dizzy. The world around me swirled and I sank to the ground. I could faintly hear Lloyd’s yells. “LILY!”

My mind slowly drifted into darkness.

***

I knew I was half awake and half asleep. I could see what was going on in the real world through a haze, but mostly all I saw were the holes. The endless darknesses that stretched before me that pulled me in, swallowing me whole. _Leon the Lion fell into the hole,_ I thought faintly, _Did he get swallowed up too?_

Then I reached the end of the darkness. I gasped at what I saw before me.

Millions of people milled around in a cave, crying out for help. I took a tentative step forward. These people all had haunted yet curious look in their eyes. I blinked, looking around and running up to the nearest person. “Excuse, but seen ‘Leon the Lion’?” I asked.

The person turned around, and I screamed. The person’s flesh on his face had been ripped away and blood dripped down onto the ground. His eyeballs seemed to be barely on his face, and nearly all the flesh around them was gone. The eyes moved onto me. “Huh, people usually scream.” He shrugged. “I gotta find out what that’s about. Now, dear, what’d you say? My hearing isn’t what it used to be.”

All thoughts of Leon the Lion evaporated from my mind. “W-What happened you?” I took another step back.

“It was that Big Snake, haven’t ya heard of it?” He frowned, thinking for a moment. “Not many people know about them Big Snake, but I do.”

I slowly took a deep breath, remembering to ask about the bounty hunter. “Uh, you know ‘Leon the Lion’ be?”

“Yeah,” The man nodded, pointing a little ways’ away, “He’s been saying that he wants to Move On soon, so you might wanna catch him before he does.”

“Move on?”

“Move On.”

I blinked, before walking to where the old man had pointed. Pushing through the crowd, I ran into a man with a lion face. Obviously, this was Leon the Lion. “Leon!” I said. “Leon the Lion?”

Leon looked down at me, nodding. “Who might you be?”

“Lily Pawn.” I shook his hand- paw. “I know friends- Ellanore and Ghostie. I helped defeat bounty hunters.”

Leon frowned. “I do not know of who you speak of.”

I blinked, stunned into silence. When I finally spoke, I said, “How not know? Best friends!”

The lion man shrugged. “Apparently not. I have no idea whom you speak of. Besides, I have no time for this; I’m Moving On in just a minute.”

“What mean?” I asked desperately.

“Moving on? It’s when you move on to the Shadow Realm, where nothing exists. People here go there because why bother eating and drinking when you have nothing to live for?”

I was about to object when I started to hear a familiar tune in a familiar voice. Blinking, I started to climb up the wall. The sound was coming from above… I had to see what it was. Leon looked up after me. “Where are you going?”

I could just hear the song’s words, but the voice and the flute were clear. “It’s a hard-knock life, for us. It’s a hard-knock life, for _us_.” The song from Annie! Lloyd was singing the words though, and Master Wu was playing his flute!

The tune very quickly got stuck in my head, and I was muttering the words under my breath. As I climbed on the roof of the cavern, I started to sing it clearly, speaking every unnecessary word with Lloyd. Soon the other ninjas’ voices joined in, until all of us were singing together- even Warren and Ghostie were singing it, even if Ghostie’s version of it had a lot more commas then needed. I didn’t know how I was hearing their voices, but I could hear them clearly.

Suddenly the cave flickered away and I saw Lloyd standing over me. In an instant, the image was gone. I climbed to the very top of the cave, but the voices were coming through the ceiling. I banged on the cavern roof, yelling the words. “IT’S A HARD-KNOCK LIFE, FOR US!”

The roof cracked, and I repeated. “IT’S A HARD-KNOCK LIFE, FOR _US_!”

The cavern ceiling crumbled away, and I resurfaced in my body. Lloyd and the ninja were standing around me, singing the song. I put a hand to my head, feeling dizzy, as everyone stopped singing. Jay’s eyes widened. “It worked! You were right, Lloyd!”

“Lily!” Lloyd exclaimed, crushing me in a hug. I squeaked in surprise. “Okay- enough.” He blushed, stepping back, and I cleared my throat. “I fell darkness and met Leon the Lion. Said Moving On and didn’t have anyone care for. I heard song and set free.”

Nya crossed her arms. “Lloyd, how’d you know that’d work? Singing ‘It’s a hard-knock life’?”

Lloyd shrugged. “I mean, Master Wu played it before for me and it came through, so I thought it might come through to Lily.”

smiled weakly. “Never forget tune. Implanted brain.”

Then I froze. There was something else implanted in my brain. The moment when Master Wu had fallen off the Bridge of Falling Mentors. Also, the moment when we’d decided to take Garmadon with us.

And the moment when I’d fallen into the hole.

Instantly, black smoke swirled around me, pulling me back into the darkness, pulling, pulling… Down, down, down… Through misty and mysterious trees and atoms and all that existed. I screamed a silent scream.

And then I awoke, gasping and sitting up straight. The ninja were for real surrounding me this time, Garmadon being guarded by Ghostie and Warren a little ways’ away. Lloyd took a deep breath. “Lily, you’re alright!”

I put a hand on my quickly-beating heart before replying. “Saw Leon the Lion. Heard Hard-Knock Life. Fell through darkness.”

Ghostie rushed over. “You spoke, to Leon?”

I nodded. “Was… Moving On, something.”

The ninja’s face fell, and Warren stepped over to him, comforting him. Lloyd helped me up. “We should get going. We’ve been waiting for you to wake long enough.” There was nothing mean in his tone; it was just stating a fact.

I smiled. “Find Ultimate Ultimate Weapon.”


	10. The Wrong Shortcut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some peeps just aren't that fun to talk to.

Lloyd and I walked in the front, a little ways’ from the others. In the middle of the traveling party was Garmadon in his cage carried by Kai, Nya, Jay, and Cole with Zane beside them, and Ghostie and Warren were in the rear, watching for enemies that might come from behind. I tried not to listen to their disturbing conversation about Garmadon’s extra arms, but I couldn’t help myself.

Kai was the one who started it, of course. “So, how’d you get four arms?” His sister face-palmed. “I don’t think that’s the right way to put it.”

The Fire Ninja shrugged. “What? He has four arms!”

Garmadon looked over at him. “No, I’m glad you’re comfortable asking, most people aren’t. Well, I was bitten by a snake.”

“So, the snake had four arms?” Cole asked.

Jay frowned. “Snakes don’t have arms.”

“No, no,” Garmadon shook his head, “The snake had been bitten by a spider, and then the snake bit me.” There was a collective ‘oh’ from the ninja. Nya cleared her throat. “What did you do when the arms started growing?”

“Well,” Garmadon thought for a moment, “At first I was like ‘OH MY MIKE WHAT’S HAPPENING?!?!?!’ and then I was like ‘THIS IS AWESOME!!!’ Sometimes I get self-conscious about it though.”

There was silence for a minute before Jay asked, “I have question, it’s about the arms. Can you shake your own hand?”

Garmadon began to shake his hands with his other hands, and Jay beamed. “He’s his own best friend!”

“Not talk arms?” I growled, getting a headache at the same time as I felt sick. Talking about growing extra arms was not one of my favorite subjects. Lloyd nodded, giving the others a dark look. “We should be practicing the art of silence right now, just a little bit?”

Jay cleared his throat. “It’s just that when you talk, I don’t wanna listen, but when he talks… I wanna listen!”

“I’ve always said he’s weak-voiced,” Garmadon agreed. “‘Just a little bit?’” He copied Lloyd’s voice, and everyone burst out laughing except for me and Lloyd. Lloyd gave them an exaggerated eye-roll as Kai tried. “‘Just a little bit?’”

“Wait!” Zane said suddenly. “He is trying to distract us! We must focus on the road ahead!”

Lloyd smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Zane.”

“I sense a fork in the trail.” The robot boy suddenly stood erect.

Indeed, ahead of us was a fork in the trail. There was a sign pointing to the right that said ‘The Right Path; A Long, Enlightening Journey’, and the sign that pointed to the left said ‘Shortcut; Possible Skeleton Graveyard’.

Jay gulped. “Why does it say… uh… ‘possible’?”

“We take the shortcut!” Garmadon ordered suddenly and loudly, making me jump. I glared at him. “Um, like said, ‘possible’. We Right Path.”

Lloyd nodded, “Uncle Wu told us to go down the Right Path. What if this is what he meant? Maybe we’re supposed to take the Right Path. Also,” He grinned, “It’s… ‘The Wrong Shortcut’.”

Garmadon ignored this joke. “Are you gonna listen to guy who fell off the bridge or the guy who didn’t? We take the Shortcut.”

Everyone exchanged glances before nodding, excluding Lloyd and I that is. It was a little annoying; they obviously hadn’t known Master Wu that long, because Master Wu was much more than a guy who fell off a bridge. We should be listening to him, but _no_ , they were being dummies and listening to, oh yeah, _the guy they were just trying to stop from taking over Ninjago City_.

Anyways, we took a left turn and head down the dirt track. Two steps down it the trees started to appear closer together, and darkness seeped from the ground. The branches of the trees blocked out the sky, and as they walked down the path Jay said, “Hey, Zane, can you record this and never play it back to me?”

“Sure!” The half-boy half-robot said optimistically. Jay laughed nervously. “Thanks.”

Ghostie went up ahead now, scouting out the area. He was hanging upside down by a vine when they finally caught up to him, and he said, “I feel, the presence, of a great evil. Stick close.”

“Wise Sensei Wu now?” I grinned, and he smiled back. “I guess, I am.”

Suddenly Warren cried out, and in and instant Ghostie was where Warren had been; the eighteen-year-old had mysteriously disappeared. Ghostie’s eyes widened in anxiety. “WARREN!” He called out.

Then skeletons started to rise from the ground, surrounding us. Lloyd started to walk backwards, the rest of us copying him. “We’re backing out, we’re backing out, WE’RE BACKING OUT!!!”

But instead of running away from danger, we simply ran into more. Behind us skulking figures stepped closer, and we were trapped between the figures and the skeletons. Garmadon then gasped with realization. “Wait a second… it’s all my old General Number Ones! Hey, how’s it going guys?”

A woman with black hair in a lionfish costume smiled, a crazy look in her eye. “We were fired… out of a volcano!” Her eye twitched, and I shuddered. She was pulling someone that was tied up behind her- and I realized it was Warren! Ghostie must’ve seen his best friend too, for he narrowed his eyes and said, “You, are going, to pay.” He leaped at the woman, pulling two swords out and attacking.

Total chaos erupted, and I was immediately confronted by three Generals. I pulled out my two katanas, the ground starting to turn to ice. One of the Generals slipped on the frozen water, sending himself sprawling far away. But the other two jumped on me, and my katanas were knocked away. _Oh Mike._ More of them quickly dogpiled me, and before I knew it, I was in Garmadon’s cage with Lloyd and his father.

_Just great. Captured by a bunch of crazy Generals._

_Just perfect._


	11. The Volcano

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of people are trying not to puke for different reasons.

The generals carried the cage farther down the path, and as we went down the path the dirt was lit up a fiery red. In a moment I realized why.

Up ahead was a huge volcano with lava bubbling down the sides of it. Millions, I’m not even joking, of fired generals cheered as they brought the cage closer to the volcano. My stomach felt left behind, and a cold emptiness started to envelop my heart. Garmadon and Lloyd were talking about something quietly, too quietly for me to hear, so I just watched as we inched closer to our deaths. A tear slipped down from my eye; I was going to end up the same way as my parents, melted into a puddle.

And then I heard them- Jenny and Theo’s voices. Then I saw them- they were sitting in the cage with us. Jenny hugged me, rubbing my back and whispering, “Oh, my little Lily, death is not something to be afraid of. But not being able to accomplish what you must before death- that is what you should be afraid of. You have accomplished so many great things, though, so there is nothing to be afraid of.”

Theo joined in, hugging the both of us tight. “In death, you have no more worries. And we will be waiting for you in death. And then we can all Move On together, to whatever lies ahead.”

I shut my eyes tight, more tears finding their way out of me. When I opened them again, Jenny and Theo were gone- they had been replaced by Lloyd. Lloyd took my hands and stared into my eyes. “We’re gonna escape this, okay? I’m not gonna let us die. We’re gonna survive.”

“Are?” I looked away. “Want death… see parents. Happy.”

Lloyd’s eyes widened, “Lily, you can’t possibly want to die! We still haven’t saved Ninjago, an-and I don’t know what I’d do without you! Our training sessions, our conversations… they’re a part of me now, and I couldn’t live without them.”

I leaned forward and kissed his cheek gently. Just then the cage stopped moving, and I realized we were in front of the top of the volcano. Lava bubbled up from below, but just before the evil fired generals pushed the cage they were all knocked out by our friends. The other ninja took off their helmets, revealing themselves when I’d thought them to be normal generals, and Lloyd’s face brightened, “Guys! Oh my gosh, how’d you get up here?”

“Oh, yeah man, we did all that stuff you and Master Wu told us to do!” Kai was beaming. “Ninja style, bruh!”

“Whoa!” Lloyd’s smile grew even bigger. Nya whipped off her helmet, pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, and opened cage, letting us prisoners walk out. “All right, let’s get outta here and find the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon.”

Garmadon cleared his throat, “That’s not gonna be easy, girl ninja, because I fired a ridic amount of generals.” Indeed; generals were swarming up the long, winding stairs- we’d have to leave if we were going to survive. As the others started to concoct a plan of escape I looked down into the volcano. _Mom, Dad, I’m coming to join you._

I was about to take the step off when someone grabbed my hand. “Lily, don’t!” I looked back to see Lloyd. His eyes were round with terror, and his grip was like solid metal. “Please,” The Green Ninja begged.

My options; jump off the ledge and fall to my death, and after I died I’d join Jenny and Theo, or listen to Lloyd and save Ninjago from the monster Meowthra. I stared into his eyes, the decision tearing me into two.

Then I remembered what Jenny and Theo had told me before; _make peace with the fire._

I pulled Lloyd to me and kissed him hard, and he kissed back. After many moments I pulled away and whispered, “Love you much. Won’t leave.”

Lloyd squeezed my hand tightly. “I love you too,” he murmured. We were about to kiss again when Garmadon cleared his throat loudly. The two of us broke apart instantly, both blushing dark red, and Garmadon said, “I know you were having a moment, but seriously? We need to get out of here- also, get a room!”

“Where Ghostie Warren?” I asked, looking around but not seeing them. Jay pointed at the ground where Ghostie and Warren were fighting the generals side-by-side. “THEY’RE FIGHTING THE GENERALS AND THEY’RE GONNA DIE!!!”

“WE, ARE NOT GOING, TO DIE!” Ghostie yelled at him.

Cole was thinking, “We could build something, like a helicopter or something, maybe a plane. There’re a lot of houses around here that we could take parts from.”

“Idea!” I flashed a smile at him, and he gave me a small grin. Perhaps the ninja were starting to like me. “Kai, Zane, Cole, Nya, Jay build. Garmadon Lloyd throw. Ghostie, Warren, I fight.”

“ENGLISH, PLEASE!!!” Kai shouted from where he was kicking a general in the face.

I gritted my teeth, knowing that proper English was needed in a situation like this. “Kai, Zane, Cole, Nya, and Jay can build the helicopter. Garmadon and Lloyd will throw them bricks. Ghostie, Warren, and I can fight off the generals while the building is going on.”

“Much better!”

So, while everyone else was building and throwing and all, Ghostie, Warren, and I started fighting off the generals. They were ferocious, almost as if there wild animals. No doubt being fired out of a volcano had meddled with their brains and addled their intellect, making them unpredictable fighters. I faced down an aging woman whose left hand had been burned off. Her eyes were cold as ice and her teeth had been sharpened to points.

“ _You_ …” the woman snarled. “You’re the one who thinks she’s so smart and has all the bad stuff happen to her, _huh_? I’ve watched you socializing with that terrible beast of some kind of demented man!”

“No socialize,” I shook my head. Garmadon was even close to being a friend of mine. “Transport.”

“I. Don’t. _Care_.” The former general leaped on me, clawing at my face. Her fingernails had been filed like cat claws, and they dug into my skin. “OUCH!” I kicked her off and snatched a sword from the air- Ghostie had tossed it to her and she’d seen it just in time.

The fight continued on, and eventually Jay called out to the fighting warriors. “The helicopters ready HURRY GET ON GET ON BEFORE WE LEAVE YOU BEHIND!!!” The Lightning Ninja seemed genuinely frightened, so I ran as fast as my legs would allow to catch up with the creation. It was shabby, but it would work. Ghostie and Warren had already gotten on and Ghostie was hugging his best friend so tightly that Warren was starting to look blue.

As I climbed onto the helicopter, my heart stopped. I heard Lloyd’s scream. I saw him hit the ground. And I saw his right arm fly off somewhere. This was not okay, and I threw up right onto Kai’s face.

Kai was frozen with shock for a moment before slowly wiping the disgusting stuff off his face, and he looked like he was trying so hard not to kill me then and there. “Thank you _so_ much for that beautiful gift.”

This was not the appropriate moment, and I was still horrified for Lloyd, but a small chuckle escaped me. It turned into a giggle, and then a full-blown laugh. A _real live laugh_. I clutched the railing next to me, laughing hysterically, unable to stop, falling to the ground, tears of pure joy tumbling down my face. Of course, when someone laughs that hard, nobody else has a choice about whether to laugh of not. Kai’s face burst into a beam and he laughed too, laughing so hard he became out of breath. “MIKE,” he gasped, “SAVE US, PLEASE.” Nobody else seemed to notice- they were too busy rushing to Lloyd’s rescue- but I couldn’t just stop. I had no choice in the matter. I curled up on the ground, going silent because I had no more breath. I couldn’t even _breathe_. What was this? Why was I laughing so hard? I threw up on my greatest enemy’s face, and he was mad at me. Why was he laughing too?

Of course, maybe that was the point. I was laughing at him, I was laughing because finally, _finally_ , something bad happened to _him_. And he was enjoying it too. It may have been disgusting, but he was _still_ laughing.

But then my pleasure died when I saw Lloyd again. We’d come to a stop and he was lying on the ground, nearly unconscious. “LLOYD!” I shouted, leaping across the landscape to him. There were still tears coming, but these ones were not happy. Garmadon was on my tail, and we both cradled the Green Ninja. The evil warlord did a full check on him, “Luh-Lloyd? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Lloyd mumbled, “I think it’s my arm, is it something bad? I don’t wanna look, I don’t wanna look.”

Garmadon yelped and leaped about ten paces away, while I still held Lloyd close to me, “Fine, fine, fine, no look.” Lloyd’s father managed to say, “It… it looks okay… I guess.”

Lloyd squeezed his eyes, waiting for a bad answer. “On a scale to one to ten, how bad is it?”

His father took a huge gulp of air. “I’d say a… seven point… arm-ripped off?”

“MY ARM IS WHAT?! What’re you- just say it one more time.”

“Just, just don’t look down below your neck, don’t look down.”

Lloyd started to tear up, obviously in a lot of pain. “Why are you doing that face, don’t do that face.”

Garmadon cleared his throat and tried to gently tell him what was wrong. “It’s just a harmless little…” He clutched his stomach and nearly threw up on Kai. “I gotta puke, it’s disgusting.”

“Should I look?” The Green Ninja looked down and screamed, like I knew he would. “I LOOKED, I HAVE NO ARM, I HAVE NO ARM, I HAVE NO ARM, NOOOO!!! THAT’S WAY WORSE THAN ANYTHING I COULD’VE THOUGHT, THAT’S BAD.”

“You’re gonna be fine! Let me text your mother.”

“NO, DAD, I NEED YOU, STAY WITH ME! BE HERE WITH ME, DO SOMETHING!”

I stood up, strode over to the evil warlord, and slapped him in the face. His eyes bulged with surprise as I yelled at him. “GET AHOLD OF YOURSELF! YOUR SON IS MAJORLY INJURED, AND YOU’RE NOT EVEN LOOKING FOR HIS ARM!”

Everyone gaped at me for using real English, and Kai whispered, “I’m sorry I brought her wrath of real words upon us.”

“Alright, alright,” Garmadon shook himself, trying to calm down. “I’m gonna find it. Uh, what does it look like?”

Lloyd was on the verge of tears. “It looks like my left arm, except it’s the right one.”

Now the evil warlord took control of the situation. He waved his arms about and gestured to the surrounding jungle. “Okay, everybody, fan out, form a grid, find Luh-Lloyd’s arm. Gotta little hand like a cup-holder, a flax sleeve, and a little piece of green on it, you’ll know it when you see it. It’s Luh-Lloyd’s arm, for heaven’s sake!”

I started searching with Nya among some rubble nearby. Nya looked back at Lord Garmadon with a new look in her eye. “I didn’t know Garmadon was Christian.”

I thought I was going to puke, but it turned out it was a burst of laughter. It seemed I was full of it today. “Expression, Nya, expression. You Christian?”

Nya snorted, and this time it was here that laughed. “No way Jose. My parents are pretty avid Christians, but both Kai and I have been Atheists since _forever_. We never got how God and Jesus Christ could actually have been real people. It’s like, nobody has that kind of power. I mean, we ourselves have elemental powers, but it’s not the same. No guy could split one loaf of bread into some-thousand-number of big slices, or however that story goes. There’s a few laws of the universe, and that’s one of them.”

“GUYS!” Cole called over. “GARMADON GOT LLOYD’S ARM BACK ON, LET’S GO NOW, PLEASE!”

The two of us girls exchanged glances and took off for the helicopter. We lifted off as the generals started to swarm us, and we went up above the clouds. The stars shone brightly down at us, and I smiled as Lloyd and Garmadon talked quietly from the drivers’ seats.

“Guys?” A weak voice spoke. “I think… I think I’m dying.”

Everyone looked to see Warren leaning heavily on the railing. An arrow was sticking from his shoulder, and that whole area of him had red cracks pulsing all along it. It was like his blood veins were glowing. He slumped to the ground, his eyes closing as he went unconscious.

Ghostie’s scream was that of a heart breaking into ten thousand smithereens.


	12. The Leaning Tower of LEGO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ghostie's worried sick for his best friend and Lily has a talk with her parents.

Ghostie was there at Warren’s side in an instant, tears flooding down his face. “Warren! NO! You, cannot die! I, will not let, you die!” He carefully plucked the arrow expertly from his best friend’s shoulder and threw it off into the skies. The bounty-hunter-ninja examined the wound, and found that his blood had indeed turned glow-in-the-dark red.

Garmadon and Lloyd came over from the front of the helicopter to see what was going on and gasped. Lloyd’s father shook his head in sorrow, “I can’t believe it. _I_ was the one who taught them how to make that poison.”

“POISON?!?!?!” Ghostie screamed, his eyes filled with fury. “WHAT POISON?!?!?!”

“Demonshade Poison,” Garmadon winced. “The only known cures are the Icetor Flowers, and… true love’s kiss.”

Everyone went silent, but after a few moments Kai raised an eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right? _True love’s kiss_? That’s made up, dude. That’s a fairy tale thing. This is serious, man.”

“I’m being completely serious!” The evil warlord spluttered. “It’s a real thing, you know, where I went for a time. I taught all my generals how to make Demonshade Poison and that’s from that place, and everything from that place can be cured by true love’s kiss. We _could_ save him if we brought him back to his father- true love’s kiss doesn’t have to be between lovers- but that would postpone us saving Ninjago City. Luckily, the Icetor Flowers are where we’re going. There’s a whole garden of them at the Temple of Fragile Foundations.”

Ghostie cradled Warren’s unconscious body against him, tears still falling down his face. I remembered how he’d looked at Warren when Warren decided to come with us. I still didn’t know what the look had meant, but I had a pretty good guess.

Then Jay spoke, “Uh, who’s driving the helicopter?”

There was a crash, and helicopter went spinning across the skies. Then it slowed to a stop in mid-air, and just dropped. Everyone was screaming- except for Warren of course- and we hit the mountainside extremely hard. The helicopter started to tilt dangerously over the cliff edge and everybody scrambled away. Luckily, it didn’t fall, so we would have a way back to Ninjago City. Lloyd gaze flickered across the whole team, his gaze lingering on me for an extra moment. “Is everyone okay?”

“Not really,” Jay muttered. Then everyone gasped, looking at the place where we’d landed. A huge temple stretched into the clouds precariously, and Garmadon whispered, “Behold; the Temple of Fragile Foundations.” A shudder in the Earth made everyone stumble slightly and Garmadon continued. “The helicopter crash destabilized the whole area.”

We climbed up the thousand stairs that led to the Temple. The whole place was beautiful, with intricate carvings and authentic Japanese architecture. Two huge lion statues were on either side of the entrance, and a blue fire was lit near the top. Jay gulped nervously, “This is my new least favorite place I’ve ever been.”

We finally reached the entrance, and I looked over at Ghostie. He was holding Warren in his arms, biting his lip nervously. “Where, is the garden, with, the Icetor Flowers?”

“It’s an indoor garden,” Garmadon said in a dark voice. “You know, I spent a lot of time here, and trust me- it doesn’t get any better.” 

Lloyd hesitated at the door, becoming nervous just like everyone else. “Wait a minute- so, you know this place?”

Garmadon wiped the welcome mat, revealing the words _The Garmadons_. “Who doesn’t know their childhood home? Yeah, this place is so unstable I had to move to a volcano just to feel safe.” He whipped away the mat and plucked up the key where it had been hidden, placing it into the lock. The door opened with a loud creak, and I trembled with fright at the total darkness. Everyone seemed totally freaked out until Jay mused, “Oh, look, a light switch.” The lights turned on suddenly, revealing a rather cozy mansion, although quite empty.

“Alright, the garden is this way,” Garmadon pointed to a green door on the right side of the main hall. Ghostie hurtled over with Warren and I followed, opening the door for him since his arms were full. It was at that moment that both of us gasped, absolutely horrified.

The garden was dead. The Icetor Flowers were completely wilted, and Ghostie started to weep again. He slumped to his knees, holding Warren close to him. Garmadon came up behind them and looked away. “I’m sorry, I- I didn’t know they’d be dead. We can stop at his father’s place on the way home. We should have enough time- the poison will probably kill him in about twenty-four hours.”

Ghostie paused in his sobbing and gave Garmadon a murderous glare. “There, better be.”

“Hey, guys!” Jay called over. “Look at all these family photos!”

I followed Garmadon to the photos, leaving Ghostie alone with Warren. There were twenty-two in all, mostly just Master Wu or Garmadon. The one in the center was Garmadon, a baby in green, and the famous Lady Iron Dragon.

“There’re so cute!” Kai pointed to a different photo- this one was of Master Wu and Garmadon as babies. Nya cooed, “Look at his baby goatee!” This was an obvious pointer for baby Wu, who looked basically the same as he did now, except he was much smaller. Jay blinked, a frown crossing his face. “I mean, Master Wu looks like a really old man.”

Garmadon rolled his eyes pushing them away from all the pictures. “Come on, let’s go find the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon.”

“Wait,” Lloyd said, grabbing his father’s wrist. He was looking at one that was of Garmadon and Lady Iron Dragon fighting together. “That’s- that’s you. And that’s…”

Nya beamed, pumping her arm. “It’s Lady Iron Dragon, my hero!”

“Yes,” Garmadon said quietly. “Lady Iron Dragon. Aka, Luh-Lloyd’s mom.”

Lloyd’s eyes widened, but he didn’t take his eyes off the photo. He kept staring at it as if it were the most important thing in the world. “Wait, what? Mom was a ninja?”

“That’s right. She was the most awesome ninja warrior I’d ever seen. I remember the first time I laid eyes on her.

“It was during a raging war. I was raiding a peaceful village with my Skeleton Army when I spotted this beautiful warrior queen across a crowded battlefield. She was fighting for good and looking great doing it, even as she decimated my evil forces. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. I was… speechless. I summoned all my courage to approach her. I asked her if she fought here often… she said, ‘I do’. And let me tell you, Luh-Lloyd- when our eyes met, sparks flew. It was love at first fight.

“Your mother and I were a true power couple. I thought we were going to conquer the world together. It was the happiest time of my life.”

Lloyd still couldn’t take his eyes off the picture, but his face saddened. “Wait a minute, wait a minute, if you guys were so perfect, then why did you leave us?”

Garmadon hesitated, looking over at his son. The Green Ninja finally met his gaze, confusion flickering in the depths of his eyes. The evil warlord sighed, “It’s… complicated.

“One day, we came upon Ninjago. I told your mother I wanted to build our son’s future on the ashes of that fine city. But it was at that moment that your mother realized that the life of a conquering warlord was not the life she wanted for you. I could’ve changed… but I didn’t. And before I knew it, she was gone. And you were gone.”

The four-armed man’s eyes started to water with unshed tears, but he held them back. “Luh-Lloyd, your mom was the best. She expected the best of me and only ever wanted the best for you. I never should have let you go.”

I felt like I was intruding. Everyone else had gone in search for the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon, leaving me alone with Lloyd and Garmadon. My heart shattered into a million smithereens for Garmadon. I knew now his past. I knew how much heartbreak he’d suffered. I silently slunk away, passing into another room that was empty.

And yet I was so full of joy. I should’ve been crying, but I just sat on the bed and stared at the wall. Someone knew what it was like to lose everyone they loved. But at the same time my heart was crushed because of the same reason. Why would the world take so much away from multiple people?

_I will never make peace with the fire._

I could feel arms wrapping around me. Two pairs of them, slightly cold. I looked down at them and found that they were pale white, slightly see-through. Jenny and Theo had come back to me. What would they think of me, now that I’d passed the chance to be with them?

But the arms around me were comforting, not angry. Jenny’s voice whispered in my ear, “Baby, my little Lily, darling, don’t be sad. Things will turn good in the end. What difference does it make now that you know Lord Garmadon’s past?”

I sniffed, tears starting to fall down my cheeks. If I knew I could touch them, I’d hug them- but I truly had no idea. “Been treating horribly. Didn’t time choose to good or bad. Lady Iron Dragon and Lloyd taken from quickly, like you me.”

Theo hugged me tighter, “Lily, as our last request from you, would you make peace with the fire? Your anguish is keeping you from a good life in the future. You could be so happy with a new family and good friends, but you can’t have that if you’re being dragged down by the fire.”

“Can’t say, ‘forget deaths’. Harder that.”

Jenny rubbed my back reassuringly, “Oh, darling, we’re not asking you to forget us or the fire. We’re asking you to make peace with it. To accept that it’s in the past, and you’re in the present now. You have Lloyd now, and I’m sure you’ll find a family that will love you just as much as we do.”

“Don’t want new,” I sobbed, putting my face in my hands, “Want _you_.”

My father stood up suddenly, his face slightly angry. “Okay, I’m done with this. Lily, you are sixteen- almost seventeen- and you need to take control over your life. If you don’t start being responsible enough to get a new family, you are going to die on the streets of Ninjago City, and I _really_ don’t want that for my daughter. Lily, as your father, I’m ordering you to move on.”

My mother winced, “Honey, don’t you think that’s a bit harsh? She needs time.”

He raised an eyebrow, unimpressed by her excuse. “She’s had plenty of time to get over it- fourteen years in fact. Lily, we love you very much, but you’re holding yourself back and we need to be strict. We aren’t going to visit you until you’ve made peace with the fire.”

“WHAT?!?!” I shouted. “You can’t parent me- you’re dead! Dead parents can’t parent their children!”

“I’m glad you’re already starting to move on by improving your English,” Theo grinned. I face-palmed, _I walked into_ that _one. Dang it, why do I have to be transitioning? Argh, I shouldn’t hang around with too many not-homeless people._

Jenny stood up, crossing her arms and glaring at her husband. “ _What_ did we agree on when we got married? Hm, wasn’t it ‘we shall never order our children around like our parents did to us’? Weren’t we going to let our children do whatever they wanted- er, anything within reason?”

Theo put his hands on his hips, “We also agreed that we’d give our children inspirational motivational lectures on how to live an awesome life. This is one of those! She can’t live an awesome life if all she can think about is us!”

“I’m right here, you know,” I muttered, because I wasn’t going to try and stop using proper English around my parents anymore. It was a hopeless cause. “And still; you can’t parent your children if you’re dead.”

“I’m sure that’s not an actual law of the univer-”

“LILY!” Kai burst into the room, and Jenny and Theo instantly disappeared. “We’ve found the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon!”


	13. Find Your Inner Piece

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Piece or peace? What could Master Wu have meant!?

Kai led me out of the bedroom and across the main hall into another bedroom, where everyone else was gathered. There was a huge casket on one side of the room and Jay twirled around in excitement. “We think it’s inside that box!”

Garmadon lifted the lid to reveal a treasure chest painted red and gold that had the letters ‘u-u-w’ on the front. _Huh, the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon. Smart._ The evil warlord then opened this chest to reveal a bunch of random pieces. Everyone gasped in awe before Nya ruined the moment. “What a bunch of _junk_.”

Jay shrugged, “What if there’s something important under it?” He picked up the chest and dumped the contents on the ground. Nothing important- it was just seven different pieces. A flame piece, a water piece, a rock piece, an ice piece, a lightning piece, a star piece, and a green branch. The Lightning Ninja heaved a sigh, “This is the Ultimate Ultimate Disappointment.”

Zane nodded, “Correct.”

“No, wait,” Lloyd picked up the flame piece and handed it to Kai. “There’s a piece for each of our elements- fire.”

Kai lifted the flame piece in front of him so he could examine in more closely. It flashed bright red, and the sound of crackling fire could be heard from nowhere. “Whoa!” the Fire Ninja breathed. Lloyd gave the rock piece to Cole, “And earth.”

Cole held the rock in his hands as it glowed a purplish color, cascading the room in its beautiful light. “This rocks!”

Next was Nya, who grabbed the water piece before anyone could touch it and waved it around the room. The sound of water filled the room and blue light emanated from the piece. “H2-ohhhh yeah!”

“Ice!” Lloyd said as Zane delicately picked up the ice piece. It beamed white, making me squeeze my eyes shut. “Cool!” the Ice Ninja whispered.

Jay was too excited to handle waiting any longer and whipped up his lightning piece and held it above his head. “Yeah, lightning!” Lightning bolts of blue struck out across the room and the piece spun in the Lightning Ninja’s grip.

Lloyd looked over at me and gave me the star piece, “Um, all the elements I’m gonna guess?” I nodded and placed the piece on my head. It sent rainbows scattering across the room, and her skin started to drip water onto the floor.

Now it was the Green Ninja’s turn, and he picked up the branch unenthusiastically. “And I’m… green. But I’m so happy for you guys! Heh, yay.”

The group of ninja left the room- Lloyd carrying the chest- and I decided to go check on Ghostie and Warren. When I came back to the indoor garden entryway I could see Ghostie searching the room for a single green plant, but none of them were alive. “Ghostie,” I called out to him, “Leaving.”

Ghostie looked up and I could see that he’d been crying for a long time. His eyes were red and puffy, and I winced. The bounty-hunter-ninja sighed and leaped over, picking up Warren and joining the other ninja in the main hall. It was at this moment that I saw Garmadon take the chest from Lloyd- and Lloyd didn’t seem happy about. “Dad, please,” he was saying, “Don’t!”

Garmadon bumped into Cole, who turned around and was confused to see the evil warlord holding the chest. The other ninja seemed to realize what was going on and surrounded him while I watched from afar, slowly making my way to the door. If he tried to escape, I was ready to stop him. Lloyd was nearly to tears, “Come back to Ninjago with me and save the city. You’ll be a hero!”

“That’s not who I am, Luh-Lloyd,” Garmadon shook his head. “People would never see me as a hero.”

“But it doesn’t have to be this way! This is your chance to make a change!”

“I didn’t want it to be this way either, but here we are.”

“Dad, please, don’t go.”

“If I couldn’t change then, what makes you think I can change now?” Garmadon punched Zane and Cole in their faces and tried to make a run for it, but Nya and Jay tackled him. A moment passed and Garmadon was free again, running towards me. Kai jumped him and passed the chest to Jay, who dropped it. Lloyd picked it up and tossed it to Nya, who threw it to Cole. Zane, Kai, Nya, and then it was sailing through the air towards Lloyd- _thump!_ The chest was at my feet and Lloyd was sprawling across the floor. Garmadon snatched it before I could move and went through the door, turning to look his son in the eye. “Oh, Luh-Lloyd… I should’ve taught you how to catch.” He then slammed the doors shut and the lock clicked.

A few seconds passed, and then the ground started to shake. I tumbled to the ground as the ceiling started to cave in, inching lower with each passing moment. Jay slid under a stool, “GET OUTTA THE WAY THE WHOLE THING IS COMING DOWN!”

“What do we do? We don’t have those pieces!” “We don’t even have our mechs!” “We’re doomed!” “We’re gonna die!” “What’re we gonna do?” “Our chances of survival are zero.”

I curled up into a ball and hoped nothing would hit me. I could hear my parents’ voices, _“Lily, find cover!” “Find your inner peace!” “Make peace with the fire!”_

Lloyd suddenly stood up, his eyes dawning with realization. “Inner peace, INNER PIECE! Guys, guys, we don’t need those pieces! The Ultimate Ultimate Weapon is inside of _you_! Yes, you have the power! Look within- harness what you already have inside and let it out! I believe in each of you! Nya, you can create water. Kai, you can make fire. Lily, you can do _both_!”

The other five ninja started to do Spinjitzu, and I joined in. Ghostie watched us, still holding Warren in his arms, as we started to go faster. Lloyd walked over to Jay, “The power is inside all of you. Now calm your mind, concentrate, build up your power! Just think about earth, fire, water, ice- and you, Jay, lightning baby, do it! Jay, you got the power!”

Jay started to spin uncontrollably and leaped into the air, lightning cascading up and down his whole body, “I’VE GOT THE POWER!” He sent lightning bolts at the double doors and they exploded, letting everyone inside out. Once outside, part of the roof came careening towards us- luckily, Cole thumped his fists together and a sonic wave blew it to tiny specks. The ninja team went for the stairs. A huge piece of building crashed through the middle of the stairwell, leaving an empty gap. Together Nya melded Zane’s ice into a slide that connected the two sides. When they reached open ground one of the two giant lion heads came rolling after them. Lloyd looked back at the Fire Ninja, “Kai, your turn!”

“I’VE GOT THE POWER!” Kai shouted as he shot flames at the head. It didn’t even pause in its pursuit. “I THINK I MADE IT WORSE!”

We continued running towards the cliff edge, although I wasn’t sure there was anything even I could do to save us if we made it to the edge. Lloyd cleared his throat, “Uh, guys, I can hear the dead, and Master Wu says to jump!”

And jump we did, straight out into empty air and onto a rebuilt flying _Destiny’s Bounty_. Master Wu was at the helm, piloting as if we thought he hadn’t died. “Great job students!” he called out through a megaphone.

“MASTER WU!” everyone but Ghostie and I shouted. Lloyd beamed at his uncle, “You’re alive!”

“Of course! I’m a ninja master, who lives life on the edge. I chase death at every turn.”

“Whoa. Really?”

“No! I thought being dead would make you listen to me more- and I was right!”

Jay spun around in excitement, jumping up and down, “We found our elemental powers!” Cole nodded in agreement, “Because Lloyd wouldn’t give up on our training.”

“He also deciphered your needlessly cryptic metaphors!” Zane added.

Master Wu smiled down at his nephew, and I had no idea how he was piloting the ship if his eyes weren’t on the skies. “Lloyd, I’m so proud of you. You helped your friends be brave, and that makes you truly a ninja master. Now, let’s go save the city from the giant kitty!”

“Wait!” Ghostie interrupted the moment. “Warren, was poisoned, by Demonshade Poison. The, only cures, are Icetor Flowers, and true loves’ kiss. The Icetor Flowers, at the temple, were all dead, so we, need to stop, at Cyclops Garys’, first.”

The old ninja master studied Ghostie for a moment before saying, “There is no time. We can go to Cyclops Gary’s house after we save the city- I promise.”

Ghostie shook his head in defeat and lowered his best friend onto the deck of the ship, his eyes once again filling with tears.


	14. Out of Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their journey is over and they return to Ninjago City, but there are still some things to resolve.

After some time of sailing peacefully through the skies, we made it back to Ninjago City. I was glad that Master Wu had managed to rebuild the _Destiny’s Bounty_ in time to pick us up, instead of having us trek back through the Uncrossable Jungle. Of course, then we could’ve stopped at Cyclops Gary’s house and Warren could’ve been healed.

As we flew over the city, Master Wu looked around and suddenly said, “We have company! Hold on tight!” And then we were doing loop-de-loops and balancing on the underside of a bridge. Sometimes I didn’t like Master Wu.

We dropped down from the ship and onto the ground below, but before anybody could say anything Ghostie, who was _still_ holding Warren in his arms, said, “I, will stay here, with Warren, to make sure, the ship, does not, get destroyed.”

Lloyd nodded in agreement and turned to the rest of us, “We need to get to Garmadon and that cat fast!”

We took off down the street towards where Garmadon was throwing the random brick pieces at the cat’s face, who did not seem happy about it. Shark Army ships came towards us and Nya dived off the bridge and into the river below, shouting, “Come on, let’s go!”

Following her, Nya carried us all while gliding over the water while Master Wu stuck beside her. I could feel the breeze whipping through my hair, and I desperately wished I had my old helmet back. Wherever it was, I was sorry for leaving it behind. After about two minutes we reached another bridge and leaped onto that one, heading straight for the advancing soldiers. Lloyd looked over at Zane, “Zane, freeze these guys over.”

Zane spun around and created an ice wall between them and the troops. The Green Ninja glanced at Kai, “Kai, make a smoke screen.” “Yeah baby!” Kai cried out, shooting fire at the ice, melting it and creating the smoke screen. We passed by the soldiers without them noticing.

The closer we came to Garmadon, the more foes we had to face. Jay struck the planes from the air with his lightning, and Cole smashed the ones on the ground with an earthquake of his own making. We were right there, we only had to run the last twenty yards-

Too late, the cat leaned forward and swallowed Garmadon whole.

The crowds of people behind us cheered, raising their arms above their heads in ecstasy, twirling around in joy. Lloyd’s eyes were wide with horror and I took his hand. The Green Ninja looked back at the people who were yelling for the ninja to take out the cat. Master Wu had joined the crowd and watched us carefully. Garmadon’s cries for help could be heard, even from inside the cat.

But Lloyd seemed oblivious to all this. He dipped his head to Master Wu, “You were right, Master Wu. I need to walk the path that only the son of Garmadon can walk.” In the next moment, he pulled off his mask and took a few steps forward towards the cat.

There was a collective gasp from the crowd. People muttered to each other, whispering about Lloyd and his alter ego. Jay stared at his friend, confused. “All we have to do is scare off Meowthra and we’ve won!”

Lloyd shook his head, “No.”

“What?!”

The person who was my only best friend continued to walk towards our enemy. Slowly, ever so slowly, did Lloyd make his way to Meowthra. “Here, kitty, kitty,” he murmured. “Hey, cat, come here. Who’s a good kitty, you’re okay, yeah, you’re okay.” Meowthra bent her head to sniff at Lloyd, who’s hair was nearly blown away from her breath. “Yeah, that’s a good kitty. What a sweet, sweet kitty. Everything’s gonna be just fine. Hey- I know it, I know you don’t mean to destroy everything.

“When, uh, when people look at you, they see a monster. But I know that you just- you just feel scared. And alone. I know how that feels. To be judged unfairly. So, um, I just wanna say that… I forgive you.

“And… I’m sorry. When I said I wish you weren’t my father, I didn’t really mean it. What I- what I should’ve said was I wish we didn’t fight all the time. I just- I just- I just I wish could’ve spent more time with you, and that you could’ve seen everything I’ve been through. But you weren’t there, and it- and I wish we could get that time back and… I need my dad, I just- I need my dad.”

The cat suddenly started to retch and out came Garmadon- covered in gross saliva and stuff- onto the ground in front of the ninja team. Lloyd’s eyes widened, “Dad? Are- are you okay?” He knelt down beside Garmadon and looked him over.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Lloyd threw himself on top of his father, “You’re alive!”

“Son?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you mean all that stuff you said- to the cat?”

“Every word.”

“Well, I know for a fact that the _cat_ feels exactly the same way.” Garmadon sniffed loudly, red lava tears starting to collect in his eyes. Lloyd blinked in surprise at his father, “Dad? Are you… _crying_?”

Garmadon tried to wipe them away, but more came. “No, it’s just that I’m cat allergic- I’m allergic to cats!” He burst into tears and Lloyd pulled him onto his feet. Then Lloyd’s mom burst out from the crowd and crushed Lloyd in a hug. “Lloyd!”

I turned away as they began to talk, knowing that it wasn’t my business to be listening. Kai and Nya had been speaking to each other, and now approached me together. _Uh-oh, what am I in for?_ Kai glanced at his sister before saying to me, “Y’know, Lily- I’m sorry I judged you way I did when we first met. I know now that you’re totally awesome, and Nya’s known it since practically forever. We were thinking- if you wanted to, it’s totally your choice- if you wanted to come live at our house. We could get our parents to take you in if you wanted.”

The voices of my parents filled my head, urging me to say yes. _“Lily, now’s your chance!” Theo whispered in my ear. “You can be in their family! You can be happy!”_

I smiled and hugged them both at once, “Yes, I’d _love_ to.” And yes, I talked normally. Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all to get across the meaning of your words the first time instead of having to explain yourself.

My happiness dissipated, though, when Ghostie came hurtling up to us. He was still holding Warren, but the bounty hunters’ son was deathly pale and Ghostie’s eyes were puffy from crying so much. “He, is dying!” the bounty-hunter-ninja wailed, dropping onto his knees in front of everyone.

Jay gasped, “Oh no! Do we have time to find Cyclops Gary?”

Cole shook his head, “No, it’s too far. Nobody happens to have been secretly in love with Warren for forever, right?”

Nya rolled her eyes, “Don’t make stupid jokes, Cole! There’s… there’s no way to save him. And besides, Warren would’ve had to love them back, and I’m not sure he’s that type of guy. Besides loving his family, of course.”

Master Wu slowly walked over to Ghostie and Warren, and he clouted Ghostie on the head with his staff. “Now might be a good time, Ghostie.” I smiled, realizing that Master Wu had come to the same conclusion as I had. And as Ghostie looked away, shaking his head and muttering, “It, would not work,” I knew my theory was true.

“You’re stupid to not try, though,” Master Wu pointed out. “If it did, you could be happy for the rest of your life.”

“And what if, it didn’t? I, would know, that all, my hopes, were wrong.”

“But what if it _did_?”

Ghostie sighed, shaking his head and then returning his gaze to Master Wu, “Do, you think, it will work?” Master Wu instantly nodded, smiling at the young man, “I do indeed. I have seen not only you holding back, but Warren.”

The bounty-hunter-ninja took a huge, shaking deep breath, closed his eyes, leaned forward, and kissed Warren on the lips.

Warren started to glow a soft yellow but Ghostie did not stop. The other young man’s eyes flickered open once, twice, thrice, and then all the way. In the next moment, Warren had sat up and was kissing back, wrapping his arms around Ghostie’s neck. I cheered and grabbed the nearest person to me- Jay- and hugged them tightly.

I could feel two more pairs of arms other than Jay’s around me. _Thank you, Mom and Dad, for making me realize that I needed to take control of my life and not be such a downer. Thank you for making me take a chance and let people into my heart. Thank you for making me move on from the fire. I have not only found my inner piece, but my inner peace as well._

This was not an ending. There would be more things to do and people to save for us. I knew that Cyclops Gary still owed us that story about the Big Snake from his old village. But for now, both the threat from Meowthra and the threat from Garmadon were gone. Ninjago City was safe. Ghostie and Warren had _finally_ gotten together. I had a new home with two great friends of mine.

Oh, and Lloyd just _has_ to build me a new mech and add me to the Secret Ninja Force.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this story! If you liked this one, check out my other Ninjago movie story: Music to the Max! It's already finished, so you won't have to wait on updates.


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